The 260th Hunger Games
ConspiracyKiller825 here, with (technically) my third Hunger Games! As I recently stated, I've really been missing writing, and rather than just putting it off I thought that I'd take the opportunity to start a new games. They'll be nothing overly fancy, as whenever I try to do those sorts of things I never end up finishing them. Hence, I'll just be going back to a simple Hunger Games, though don't worry, the arena will have plenty of twists and turns to keep the story interesting and unique. There will be slight references to my previous games, as this will continue on from them. However if you haven't seen them beforehand don't be alarmed, as it won't be too major of a point. But if you would like to check them out for a read: 258th Hunger Games & 259th Hunger Games . Anyway, I can't wait to start writing the story, so please feel free to join. Happy Hunger Games, and may the odds be ever in your favour! Rules/Items You Need To Know *Up to two tributes per user. (Should there not be enough interest, this will be opened up at a later date). *It goes without saying that most tributes will be accepted, yet those who are boring or overpowering. *Sticking to the simplistic theme, the story will just be the training scores & odds then straight to the games. *Reservations last a maximum of five days. *There will be no direct sponsorship from users, however feel free to give constant advice and encouragement in the comments. *The arena will be kept a secret until the bloodbath is published. *There will be the normal two tributes per district, with the Capitol and District 13 being added, equaling twenty-eight tributes in total. *Please feel free to comment anything else or ask me any questions. Tribute Template Required: Name: (First and Last) Gender: District: Age: (12-18) Personality: Backstory: Strengths: Weaknesses: Fears: Weapons: Alliance: Physical Appearance/Picture: Tributes Alliances Careers Nova Deimos (1), Tux Bowden (1), Genevieve Azarling (2), Tamerlan Chirp-Mauthe (3), Raven Waterborne (4), Eugene Watson (4), Bryndon Jacobson (5), Lydia Waterborne (6), Jasper Syris (10), Charlotte Hildebrand (13), Fjord Holt (14). Leader: '''Tux Bowden (1) '''Co-Leader: '''Eugene Watson (4) '''Anti-Careers Wes Vagent (2), Jayda Idlwyld (3), Arissa Stone (7), Vesper Brooks (7), Canary Ash (12). Leader: '''Canary Ash (12) '''Co-Leader: '''Jayda Idlwyld (3) '''Thorburn Alliance Kim Thorburn (11), Tim Thorburn (11). Leader: '''Kim Thorburn (11) '''Co-Leader: '''Tim Thorburn (11) '''Trustworthy Alliance Blake Candless ©, Lilah Jöllenbeck (8), Geoff Buckney (10), Heaven Burke (14). Leader: '''Lilah Jöllenbeck (8) '''Co-Leader: '''Geoff Buckney (10) '''Alone Lyra Lucrian ©, Nylah Nichole (5), Xerxes Pitch (6), Jason Panza (8), Celia Gunesh (9), Liar Shproud (9), Ash Vile (12), Anthony Sharpclaw (13), Training Scores and Odds The Games The Bloodbath Vesper Brooks (7) I stood in one of the blandest rooms I had ever seen, as I awaited to step inside the tube that would launch me into the next uncertain time of my life. Wasn't that ironic? The Capital was overflowing with money, and just minutes before I could meet my demise, they couldn't even put the effort in to try and put my nerves at ease. At least my stylist Hamish was supportive; which only made his chiseled jaw that much more attractive. "Any hints you can let me in on?" I asked in a slightly provocative tone, "The material is one I've rarely seen before. It's highly reflective yet thick to provide warmth. If I were you, I certainly wouldn't be expecting anything tropical," he replied as he sized my outfit up with his eyes. No matter the conditions of the arena, it didn't change a whole lot for my strategy. If you could even call it that. With no weapon experience, and an alliance that is only nearly half the size of the Careers, I had concerns whether I'd be able to survive through the next couple of hours. My mentor Lachlan had just advised me to try stick to the outskirts during the Bloodbath, meet up with my allies, and try to avoid the path of others at all costs. It made sense. I wasn't doubting my chances to win the games, but I knew I didn't have the potential to achieve much in the first couple of days. I knew that my prime would come when minimal tributes were left within the arena, or at least that's what I was telling myself. Suddenly I heard the tone of the speakers begin to ring. "Please enter your tubes and await for the beginning," "You have nothing to worry about. Jason did it last year, he was right here, standing in your position, and he managed to be victorious. I have faith you can do the same," says Hamish sympathetically. I can only manage a nod. He pulls me in for a hug, and I make sure to appreciate his jawline one final time before stepping inside the tube. I deserved something to be thankful for at this time right? In a matter of seconds, I had become enclosed in the tube. I squeezed my eyes closed, and gulped when the platform began to rise. There was no turning back now. Nova Deimos (1) My legs stood stiff, as the platform began to push my numb body upwards. I was taking short breaths, keeping my heart rate as steady as possible. While I didn't want to be scared out of my mind, I certainly didn't want to be filled with adrenaline or arrogance as well. Suddenly my eyes were blinded by the immense light that all the victors described in their stories. Only this time it didn't fade into harsh sunlight, but rather completely dropped into darkness. I heard scared gasps coming from pedestals all over the place, as tributes were confused to why the arena was in nighttime essentially. It would've been pitch black, had it not been for the doubled-sized blood moon that was illuminating the battlefield. I looked around me, seeing a forest of dead trees in every direction. That is of course minus the direction of the cornucopia. The pedestals were in a circular formation, as they usually were. I had my ally Lydia on my right, and that timid girl from District 8 on my left; nothing threatening to my existence. It was an open field of grass, that provided an eerie vibe, as it already appeared to be stained with blood from the moon's glow. Then what I realised nearly made me gasp. The cornucopia didn't seem to exist. It was one single column, like a man-made tree trunk, that rose high into the sky, as if it were holding up the moon. To the point that I could see the tributes on the pedestals placed directly across from me, which I don't think has ever happened in a Hunger Games before. Which also meant that we Careers had no shelter, and no impressive base of sorts. But oh! How did I not mention this? The only weapons I could see where knives. They were just sprinkled across the grass, mostly surrounding the column structure. They all were of different sizes and makes, but there certainly weren't any swords or bow and arrows. More on that, there weren't any backpacks or supply looking items that I could notice, I mean what were the gamemakers up too? Luckily this particular situation only enhanced my chances of survival; being a specialist with knives and allies with the Careers, meant that I would be able to work with this. But I knew that a lot of the other tributes would be royally screwed over. Suddenly I heard the familiar sound of an announcement beginning from the gamemakers. I just realised that the timer hadn't even been going, were they just wanting us to assess how to deal with this situation beforehand? "Good evening tributes. Welcome to the 260th annual Hunger Games. You may be under the impressive that this speech will explain your current given situation. If so, you would be wrong. This will just provide you with another piece to the puzzle. This year, the Capital will not be responsible for collecting the bodies of those who have been slaughtered. Within the arena, not too far from where you all are standing, is a graveyard. This is where we ask you to bury those who don't survive, within the first hour after their death. This is too remind you of your decisions, and their corresponding actions and consequences. Speaking of which, there will be consequences should this rule be disobeyed. From the Capital, we'd all like to wish you a happy Hunger Games, and may the odds be ever in your favour!" Instantly, the counter revealed thirty seconds. The announcement seemed to just confuse tributes more. I couldn't blame them really, I was bit lost myself. But that announcement did reveal a lot of how these games could pan out. The most important part I noticed was that the bodies had to be buried in the first hour of their death. Which could imply that the arena is quite small, and travelling around wouldn't take that long. I quickly wondered if my allies noticed that detail, and if they didn't would I tell them? Then the counter hit ten seconds. As soon as the gong sounded I knew I needed to be on my feet and with weapons. I could do this. 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, GONG!!! Genevieve Azarling (2) I sprung off my pedestal, but I saw heads turn my way in surprise as I began to head diagonally to my right. I had risen into the arena to find that surprising threat Geoff on the pedestal to my left, yet that weak tribute Jason on the pedestal to my right. Considering the only actual weapons available were knives, and the cornucopia wasn't going to provide any protection, I decided to take advantage of the situation. Especially since achieving the first kill would put me in a great position not only as an individual tribute, but within my alliance as well. Luckily, Jason had the plan to try and run and grab one of the rare knives placed fairly close to the pedestals. Due to his young age, not only was he not that fast, but he wasn't that strong either. I couldn't even tell if he knew I was coming for him. I charged at him with all my might, at the last second jumping towards him. I managed to wrap my arms around his torso as we both went flying towards the ground. Because I had restricted his arms, Jason hit the ground with his face and screamed as we slid across it. As he was distracted, I scrambled up and stomped on his back to keep him in pain. I then grabbed his right foot and began to drag him back towards the pedestals. He clearly knew the end was coming, as he laid there sobbing to himself, not trying that hard to break away. Yet as we arrived back at his pedestal and I went to pull his head up from the ground, he clocked me right in the face. It wasn't that hard but it was still pain inflicting. Then in a swift movement, I pulled his torso up and slammed his back against his pedestal. I then punched his annoying face over and over again. His head would bounce between my fist and his pedestal. For the final blow, I kneed him in the chest to wind him, before covering his face with my right hand and gipping his neck with my left. I would've enjoyed chocking the life out of him but I knew that I didn't hold that much strength. Hence, I kept shoving his head back against the pedestal as quickly as possible. I could tell the life was draining from him, not just from the blood that was pooling out, but his survival instinct were kicking in, as his body began to squirm. Yet I managed to keep him pinned down, as I continued to keep smashing with all my might. It took longer than I would've liked but eventually; BOOM! And his body fell limp in my hands. "Now don't go anywhere, I look forward to burying your even more useless dead body," I said with a massive grin covering my face. Jayda Idylwyld (3) The sound of the first cannon instantly reminded me to get the hell on with it. Everything was rushing past like a blur. I had risen into the arena with Tim from District 11 on my left and Blake from the Capital on my right. I took a wild guess that they wouldn’t attack me straight away, nor would they be fast enough to catch me; which luckily was a correct assumption. I didn’t even want to think about how random the new arena and rules were, because that was a concern for a later time. I was unable to make out any of my allies in the immediate vicinity of my pedestal, yet we all knew the plan going in. With my speed I was to run into the cornucopia, ideally grab a weapon for everyone, and make it back out unscathed to where the others would already have gathered together. It was risky, but any plan surrounding the bloodbath was risky. At the sound of the gong, I hit the ground running like a number of other tributes. I managed to break away from the crowd and reach the ‘cornucopia’, or whatever it was now, as one of the first tributes. Those who made it early and weren’t Careers, wouldn’t even stop, just bending down to pick up a knife on their way through. While I wanted to take note of who was grabbing weapons, I knew that would be too distracting and wouldn’t allow me to get out of here alive. I had already managed to grab some throwing knife sets for Canary and Vesper, and I was seconds away from collecting some random knives for the rest of us. But that’s when I saw it. I could see the shadow of a figure behind me, with a knife glinting in the moonlight. They stabbed out horizontally, and wouldn’t hit my back, had I not ducked and seen him in advance. I looked up to see Eugene’s smirking face standing over me. With a knife held in my right hand, I quickly turned over and aimed for his foot. It only just scraped his outer shoe; not even touching any flesh. Eugene then swung his leg and kicked his foot right into my face, which sent me flying back into the ground. I had dropped some of the knives, but I quickly whipped out a throwing knife from my back pocket and threw it in his direction as he began to run towards me. I saw it lodge in Eugene’s left shoulder as he pounced on me; pinning me down. I began to scream out, but my cries were useless, as he instantly drove a knife across my throat. It was slashed that deep, that I felt numb to the pain. Suddenly it was like everything had stopped. Eugene had already run off, I couldn’t hear anything, and nobody appeared to be around. Though in the blink of an eye, Callia, was standing on the red tinted grass walking towards me. “No… No…. This isn’t possible,” I exclaimed breathless, “Come with me Jayda, I’ve found an abandoned warehouse in the woods,” Callia revealed excitedly, “What? I know that’s where you…. You….” I said as I began sobbing, “Jayda sweetie, don’t despair. We’re going to have the best time we’ve ever had,” she replied angelically. That’s when I was smacked back into reality, to the sound of my own cannon ringing in my lifeless ears; BOOM!!! '''I hoped I would see her again soon. Tux Bowden (1) It had taken me a while to reach the column structure, to the point that two canons had already sounded. I had pretty good assurance that they were from Careers, which was a positive at least. I had grabbed some throwing knives and two basic knives to begin my domination. I began to look around for my potential target. I could see Geno leaning up against the column, with Nova and Charlotte attending to some wound of his. Tributes were still running and standing all over the place. I could even notice some of my allies chasing tributes all the way into the forest. I wasn't prepared to put myself at risk like that, but as if by chance, while I was circling around the column, I could see Anthony from District 13 doing the same on the outskirts. Within seconds he met my gaze with a flare of fire visible in his eyes. Suddenly he was bolting towards me, a knife clenched in his right hand. I instantly prepared myself to start running as well, but my agility was no match for his. Before I could even move he had appeared in front of me, swinging his knife towards me as if it were a sword. I had the weaponry skills to block his failed attack. I went to kick him with my right leg, but he anticipated the move, grabbing it before I could land a hit, and pushing me off balance on to the ground. Anthony gripped his knife high with both hands, knowing the attack that was coming, I rolled off to my left. Quickly, I scrambled up and thrusted my knife into the direction of where I was laying moments beforehand. As Anthony slammed his knife down into the ground, I had thrusted mine right into the right side of his temple. Instantly, he mouth dropped a gallon of blood, and his body went limb; my grip on the knife being the only thing that was holding his body up in a kneeling position, '''BOOM!!! I placed my left foot on his shoulder and pushed him with all my might to pull the knife out of his temple. It was hard not to smile as the red-tinted grass surrounding me turned into a pool of crimson blood. These games were off to an incredible start. Fjord Holt (14) I had taken a back seat in the bloodbath thus far. I had seen all the kills, which had all been achieved by Career tributes, and I had noted their battle tactics for the future. Tux certainly appeared to be difficult to put down, Geno appeared too focused that he could be at least easily wounded, and Genevieve appeared to give everything and more into a fight. I'd be lying if I said it didn't worry me, would I be able to beat them when it came down to it? Would I just have to rely on chance that some other tribute would take them out? Especially since I was only the 7th highest ranked tribute out of the Career alliance, I was in quite an un-controlling position. When I had volunteered to participate in these games, I had had the wish to be one of the main Careers calling the shots. Yet even the best laid plans go array am I right? I was going to have to work with the opportunities in my control. That included a kill within this bloodbath, which would hopefully help me to reach that position I wanted to be in. Alliances were still gathering on the outskirts near the pedestals, yet a number of the loners had fled in fear. That was with the exception of that tribute called Liar from District 9. It's probably a smart idea for him to go alone, as his name doesn't really hold for a trustworthy alliance. Equiped with a knife I headed towards him. He was stumbling across the grass, spending more time on the floor than on his feet. He still appeared to be heading for the cornucopia, even considering if he got much closer he would've been dead meat for sure. Realising he held no potential threat to me I walked up to him, keeping a good meter in-between us for protection. "Mate are you alright there?" I asked, it was only now that I could hear him crying as well, "No! I can hardly see anything.... Everything just looks bloody!" he exclaimed with anger, "It's not blood, it's just the moon.... Which you can't see of course. Are you blind?" I asked, intrigued by his current situation, "Just when it's this dark, I can manage in the daylight," Liar replied in a calmer tone. Considering the gamemakers new approach to these games, the thought had crossed my mind that daylight wouldn't be seen again until the Victor was back in the Capital. Liar was now just lying sprawled out on the floor. "What would you like me to do? Is there anything I can do?" I asked taking pity on the man, "I can't do this! I can't do this anymore! I'm done for and I'm ready to be done," Liar stated with determination rather than anger. I dropped to my knees next to him. "I hope that you're able to find peace on the other side," I whispered into his right ear, as I plunged my knife into his heart without hesitation. He gasped from the initial shock, before collecting himself and taking one final exhale.... BOOM!!! Just because it was the Hunger Games didn't mean that I couldn't do good for other people. Xerxes Pitch (6) I spat the grass out of my mouth that Tamerlan had just shoved in my face. How could I receive any more bad luck? I rose into the arena to find Jasper to my right and fatefully Tamerlan to my left; two Careers who had every reason to try and take me out due to my high training score. I had contemplated just running into the woods, but I sensed that Tamerlan would've just followed me anyway. At the gong, I sprinted for a weapon, though I couldn't even make it halfway before I was scuffling with Tamerlan on the ground. Jasper had attempted to assist him, but he just waved her off, yelling at her to stay out of it. While that increased my chances of survival, it made me more scared to hear the fierce ruthlessness in Tamerlan's voice. At that point he didn't have a weapon, hence we were evenly matched in strength. I was able to scramble out from underneath him and land a couple of quality punches on his upper chest and neck, before he grabbed both of my wrists and pulled me head first into the ground. I continued rolling into a somersault and jumped up beginning to run towards the nearest knife. Tamerlan instantly followed in pursuit. I wasn't going to miss this chance, hence, when I thought I had covered the minimum distance, I dived with my right arm stretched out as far as possible to grab the knife. I just escaped Tamerlan's gasps to pull me backwards. With the knife in my hand, I attempted to turn over onto my back, but I was suddenly pinned down by Tamerlan's body weight. That's when he grabbed a fistful of grass and swamped my face within it. I managed to wriggle my right hand from his gasps just enough to stab the back of his right hand that was covering my face. He instantly recoiled and stumbled off me. I quickly attempted to clean my face before standing up. I turned around to see Tamerlan standing with the knife in his left hand, awaiting to see what my move was. His stab wound hadn't been that damaging, due to the lack of force I could perpetuate it with, yet it would be enough for him to struggle to fight with it. I quickly pretended as if I were about to lunge forward, and Tamerlan fell for it, extending his left arm to stab me. Yet I pulled myself back and round-house kicked the knife out of hands, it flew a good enough distance away that he couldn't just grab it again. Tamerlan appeared shocked, and I stood there grinning. But I was too late to realise that I had fallen for his trap; in my gloating, I had let my guard down, and within a second he had pounced on me. I was knocked to the ground and completely pinned down by Tamerlan's determination. He wrapped his left hand around my neck and pushed it down harder with his right. I looked around for something to grab, but there was nothing, and in this position I had no power over him. I could hear my breath getting shorter, and my brain getting dizzier. With the final seconds of my life, I found some solitude in knowing that the peacekeepers would never get me; even these tributes would be responsible for my burial. I had truly escaped...... BOOM!!! Kim Thorburn (11) The bloodbath was coming to a close, yet the stress levels that I was feeling were far from over. Of course I should be stressed right? I mean my life could be over any second now. But it was more than that. I had been focused and somewhat calm when I had risen into the arena, even when I discovered Ash from District 12 and Raven from District 4 on the pedestals around me. Who both by the way just started going at each other at the sound of the gong, I swear I even saw them run off into the woods, maybe one of the cannons had been for them? I suppose it doesn't really matter. The plan that our mentor Bryce had discussed with myself and Tim, was that at the gong, we were to search for each other and once I could identify Tim in the distance I was to give him a signal. The signal meant that he was supposed to go straight to the edge of the woods and await my return with some weapons that I had collected. I think it was the fact that the arena was set in nighttime that was making my brain freak out. Not only did I have to find Tim, but yet later in the games, we would be even slower due to the lack of visibility. I swear it took me a couple of cannons before I saw Tim, which of course only stressed me out even more because any of them could've been him. I instantly had waved both my arms up as obvious as possible, and I saw him nod and smile at me before turning towards the nearest forest entry and walking towards it. Luckily the Careers were quite occupied, either in battle, or alternatively assisting to the wounds of their allies. At least that levelled the playing field, as they wouldn't have any supplies like the rest of us. I could already tell that water would most likely play a major factor in how the next couple days would pan out. Moving on, I was able to sneak rather close to the column structure and grab two knives off the ground instantly. I turned around to check on Tim, and I saw him give me the thumbs up. I laughed, was that the correct response given the current situation? I decided that we'd need more than just two knives if were to have a true chance at winning this thing. Yet I couldn't see any around me, hence I started running around the column to see if there were any more. The only ones I could see, were way too risky to attempt, so I figured this was better than nothing. I turned around to head back to Tim and it was in that moment my life was shattered into a million pieces. I saw Raven, stab Tim right in the middle of his stomach with a dagger from behind. "TIM!!!!!!!!" I screamed, as I bolted towards him. I saw Raven's eyes widen. I threw one of my knives in her direction, yet it missed and went flying into the woods. I didn't care, I didn't care about her at the moment. I just wanted Tim to be with me, and nobody else. I kneeled beside him and pulled his head up on to my lap. "Shhh! It's going to be okay, everything is going to be alright," I spoke, more to myself than Tim, "Yes Kim, it will be. You're unburdened, I believe in you, make it home, please!" Tim exclaimed. I was beyond tears at this point, as blood began rising out of Tim's mouth. "I love you.... Tim? Tim can you hear me?" I desperately searched for an answer and got one that I didn't want..... BOOM!!! "I'm sorry for your loss," stated Raven out of nowhere, I turned and stood up to her. "How dare you.... HOW DARE YOU, YOU BITCH!" I yelled. "I understand your anger, but you have to go now. If you do, there's still a chance for you to be the one to bury your brother. I can distract Tux and Geno for as long as possible, but ultimately the longer you wait the more risk you put yourself at," Raven replied with strength. Did it make me a horrible person that I was actually considering this offer from my brother's killer? Geoff Buckney (10) TBA